Ashvin Gidwani's 'The Scent of A Man' touches sensitive cords of long-term relationships in lighter notes

He has been associated with theatre for almost two decades now. His company has produced diverse popular works like The Alchemist, City of Dreams, Blame It On Yashraj, History Of India and many more. So when Ashvin Gidwani decided to enter direction, one had to take notice. “The concept of The Scent Of A Man has been in my mind for nine years but it is only now that I am donning the director’s hat,” says Ashvin.

Playing along
His play, which will premiere at NCPA on November 10, is a humourous take on a slice of life. “Sometimes, when people live together for many years, the relationship becomes very habituated. The couple grows on each other and many a times become complacent,” he says.

The action, which centres on two married couples; Mallika and Nikhil and Ananya and Partho, unravels over two evenings in Nikhil’s house. “We start taking our spouse for granted. And then there is a devil everywhere in the society. It is on us how to fight that devil,” Ashvin explains. The evening is a perfect love-quadrilateral gone awry.

Right it down
Getting the script together was not easy. He says “The play went through many drafts before the final script. I kept wondering if it will be able to shock the audience.” And when he found the right writer, he was able to finish the work in nine months at a go.  “He was patient and gave me complete freedom to write and evolve the script based on my sensibilities. What I liked most about Ashvin is his collaborative approach,” says his write Ivan Rodrigues. The casting too took long. “I held 20 workshops only to select the cast and then put the cast through another set of workshops to add finesse to the acting,” informs Ashvin.

Four loonies
The play has a star cast of Ash Chandler, Suchitra Pillai, Deven Khote and Bhavna Pani. “There’s a certain bizarre lucidity that comes from excessive madness... Ashvin and his team have thrown together four certified loonies on stage with a witty, in-your-face script, and hopefully achieved this,” says Deven, who is returning to theatre after 21 years with this play. No doubt, his cast enjoyed the experience. “Working on this play has been a revelation! We have as much fun on stage as we have off it! A group that got on like a house on fire from day one,” Suchitra adds.

“They are stars in their own right — all of them. My basic aim has been to bring all of them together to work in tandem. I am not an aggressive director, I would say. I want my cast to enjoy their performance,” says Ashvin.